The EDGE Men's Ministry

05/24/2021

HOPE TO SEE YOU THERE!!!

11/10/2020

What God Has Joined Together
Verse: Deuteronomy 24:1-5

Recommended Reading
Ephesians 5:22-33; Hebrews 13:4
Most of us would agree that divorce is not a laughing matter. But that doesn’t stop people from joking about it, like one comedian who said, “My ex-wife is a great housekeeper—when we got divorced, she kept the house.” Legal terms like “no fault” and “uncontested” fuel the idea that divorce is an easy, acceptable alternative to marriage. Instead of treating divorce seriously, people begin to view it as just another option to be considered in the context of modern relationships.

Some people even look to the Bible to justify divorce. They search Scripture to find “loopholes” in God’s rules for marriage. But we’re missing the point when we hunt for God’s permission to divorce.

For a deeper understanding of God’s true perspective on marriage, we need to look at the provisions he extends to newlyweds in Deuteronomy 24:5. God excuses the recently married man from many responsibilities—including military service—for a full year so that he can give his full attention to his wife.

Think about that. God’s gift to newlyweds was a whole year to work on building a solid foundation in their marriage. One year for the husband to learn to meet his wife’s needs. One year to hone their communication skills. One year to prepare for life’s journey together.

God clearly supports the institution of marriage. Throughout Scripture he offers invaluable help to husbands and wives who commit themselves to each other for life.

If you’re married, think about this: What if you’d been given a year after your wedding to focus only on your wife? How would your relationship be different today? It’s not too late to find out. Maybe you don’t have an entire year, but you can start with a day at a time. Clear your schedule so that you can give your wife your undivided attention. If you have commitments that take you away from home on the evenings and weekends, consider dropping one or two of them to focus on your relationship. Listen to her concerns. Commit yourself to meeting her needs. Look for ways to bring her happiness. With God’s help, you can turn your marriage into a love story for the ages.

To Take Away
• What would you say to a friend who is contemplating divorce?
• What’s the biggest challenge in your marriage right now?
• What specific steps can you take this week in order to deepen your relationship with your wife?

10/12/2020

07/22/2020

Blood on His Hands

Verse: Hebrews 10:19-39

Recommended Reading: Leviticus 16 ; Matthew 6:19-21; Romans 8:28-39; 1 John 1:1-4

The sacrifice of atonement involved lots of blood—that should be a clue for us as to its importance to God. Once a year the high priest entered the most sacred place on Earth to offer up to God the blood of an animal. As a result, according to the law, the people of Israel temporarily stood in right relationship before their Creator Father.

Those of us who grew up attending Sunday school sometimes have a misperception that the temple was a place like the church in which we grew up—typically clean, orderly and with a planned program for worship. Most people, dressed in their “Sunday best,” sat quietly during the service and then enjoyed refreshments afterward. But that’s not what the Israelites experienced. The temple was for them a place of slaughter, bloodletting and sacrifice.

To be sure, the sacrifice was a messy business—hearing the cries of the resistant animal; watching the priest execute the slaughter and spread the sacrificed animal’s blood on the altar; and then watching the carcasses being sliced, cut and burned in sacrifice to God. Yes, this was a visceral experience quite opposite of what we experience in worship today. Yet this brutal ritual represented God’s provision for Israel to become once again right with him.



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We shouldn’t be surprised that God’s new, permanent arrangement for people to come to him also required blood on someone’s hands. Jesus’ blood stained many hands: those of Judas, the Jewish Pharisees, the Roman government—even Pilate, who tried in advance to wash the symbolic stains from his hands. But Jesus’ blood fell mostly on the hands of his own Father, the God who “did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all” (Romans 8:32).

Our sin separates us from God, makes us wrong before him. In turn, God’s sacrifice of his own son cancels our separation from God. The blood of his Son sets us right before the Father.

That’s the far-reaching extent of our Father’s love for us. He reaches out to us today with those same bloodstained hands. The permanent, atoning sacrifice of the unblemished Lamb, Jesus, permits us to “draw near to God” (Hebrews 10:22), to “hold unswervingly to the hope we profess” (verse 23), to “spur one another on” (verse 24), to “not [give] up” and to “[encourage] one another” (verse 25).

To Take Away

• Take a few minutes to read Leviticus 16. Why do you think God required such elaborate ritual and detail for the sacrifice of atonement?

• According to Old Testament law, Israel needed to offer sacrifices to become right before God. In the New Testament Jesus becomes the final sacrifice for all. Why did God require a sacrifice at all?

• How does the thought that the Father “gave [Jesus] up for us all” (Romans 8:32) make you feel about God? Why? What effect does this have on your life?

07/13/2020

We’ve been through this once and will get through it again. Online services will continue as they have been.

Romans 13:1-2 says: "Obey the government, for God is the One who has put it there. There is no government anywhere that God has not placed in power. So those who refuse to obey the law of the land are refusing to obey God, and punishment will follow."

More information will follow as we learn more.

Governor Gavin Newsom has ordered gyms, churches and several other businesses to close their indoor operations in most Central California counties effective immediately. The new order is part of a major rollback in the state's reopening efforts amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.